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Trip Planning

Discussion in 'Introductions' started by Ted Wolf, Feb 5, 2012.

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    Ted Wolf Seaman

    Message Count:
    4
    My wife and I just bought a cruiser so we could spend extended stays on the water. We previously had a runabout, but we wanted to spend the weekend nights on the boat. We are also planning a week trip to St. Michaels in late May to early June. Being new to spending long periods of time on the boat, what type of things do you look at when planning your trips i.e. marinas to stay, items to bring that you wouldn't normally think of, etc. Also, if anyone knows any good spots along the way or spots to anchor let me know. We are coming from Potomac Creek.
    Ted Wolf, Feb 5, 2012
    #1
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    cowboyup Developer

    Message Count:
    309
    Boat Name:
    No Allowance
    Marina:
    Aquia Harbour
    Hey Ted,

    Glad to meet you. Yes, I think everyone started off in a run about and transitioned to a cruiser (we did) :-)
    Planning first starts off with our Distance Mapper : http://potomacboaters.com/wiki/distance-map/
    This will let you follow the river and/or streams and give you some "true" distance measurements.

    I also like to pick one or two spots on each leg of the trip for "emergencies" just so I'm aware that so and so marina has fuel - for example.

    We like to pick marinas that have pools during the summer as its the only way to cool off during the day (unless you hide in the boat).

    Packing... One tip (there's lots of jokes for this one) but... Dry Ice and a designated cooler for deep-freezer type meats and stuff.
    4-5 blocks of dry ice will last 4-5 days and keep everything rock solid... (including beer if you try and use it in the beer cooler) LOL

    We have a pretty good list of anchor spots that we know of here: http://potomacboaters.com/forums/waypoints/

    Always be sure to have called the marinas and made sure you have a slip...
    I like to use tool here or other places to zoom in via satelite to get a good idea how the marina is layed out and how to approach it - etc...

    You can use this one: http://potomacboaters.com/wiki/explorer/
    It allows you to cruise around like google maps but in the bottom right is a "Charts" button which will overlay your map with a true Marine Chart.

    We are out of Aquia Creek - made the mistake of hitting Potomac Creek a few times coming from Tims 2... But haven't really explored it much.

    Packing is really going to boil down the size of the boat and how much you plan to eat out.
    Keeping in mind that if you plan to stay at marinas each spot, you'll most likely have power - so it tends to be a bit different than spending the entire weekend out at anchor.

    I'm in class right now - but I'll give this some more thought as the day goes on.

    We just did a trip to St. Michaels ourselves last year.
    Went to Baltimore, Rock Hall, Kent Narrows, then Saint Michaels...

    Saint Michaels is really cool - gotta remember the name of the local bar that tought us Pinapple Upside Down Cake - Vodka drinks
    cowboyup, Feb 5, 2012
    #2
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    Ted Wolf Seaman

    Message Count:
    4
    Ted Wolf, Feb 5, 2012
    #3
  4. Offline

    Ted Wolf Seaman

    Message Count:
    4
    Thanks for the advice. Never would have thought about the dry ice, but it makes sense. We are thinking about making stops at Saint Mary’s, Solomon’s Island, and Annapolis along to way. The distance map works great on gathering the distances, especially to figure how much gas is going to cost!
    Ted Wolf, Feb 5, 2012
    #4
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    juanita Moderator

    Message Count:
    1,591
    For your long trip, roll of quarters, Purex laundry sheets, Laundry bag, tools, extra boat parts, little crockpot for cooking while you're out exploring, and extra water/gatorade. We ran out of watter bottles one year, and the marina we were at wanted to charge us $12 for case of water. Can you say B.S.?
    We left Monday from Aquia Creek and came home Sunday... it was an 8hr ride underway one-way, stopping at Solomons for fuel and then up the Bay. Whew! Get ready. :-)
    We always seem to overpack food supplies, but it always makes for a nice end-of-week buffet/splurge. :-)
    St. Michaels was my favorite spot... Kent Narrows (Red Eye Dock Bar) was awesome with the pool side bar, fitness center, and huge shower rooms. :-) Nice current in there, too... careful!
    juanita, Feb 6, 2012
    #5

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